BDR files motions to change verdict
Bill Davis Racing has filed three motions in U.S. District Court in Michigan in response to a verdict of $6.5 million in damages it has been ordered to pay DaimlerChrysler.
A jury awarded the damages to Dodge on Feb. 9 after a four-week trial in Detroit. The jury found that BDR gave confidential Dodge information to Toyota and also violated its Cup agreement with Dodge when it signed a contract with General Motors to race in the Busch Series and up to seven Cup events.
BDR has filed three motions: one requesting a new trial, another to request a reduction in damages and another for a judgment that it did not violate its Dodge agreement by signing the GM contract.
Among the arguments are improper jury instructions and issues dealing with the way Dodge compiled its amount of damages.
If Judge George Caram Steeh upholds the verdict, BDR has announced plans to appeal.
Dodge terminated its contract with BDR in May 2003 after it discovered BDR's work with Toyota's truck program. The six-year, $18.425-million contract was scheduled to end in 2005. BDR's work on the truck was ruled legal by Steeh, but he left it up to the jury to decide whether BDR gave confidential Dodge information to Toyota.
